


Accidental Guardian

by TheBonobo



Series: Azula becomes Best Older Sister/Mom [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Bending (Avatar TV), Angst with a Happy Ending, Azula (Avatar) Redemption, Childhood Friends, Childhood Trauma, Comfort Food, Drugs, Dysfunctional Family, Dysfunctional Relationships, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Kiyi gets adopted, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Parent/Child Incest, Prostitution, Protective Azula (Avatar), Racism, Self-Love, Semi-Original Work - Freeform, Unreliable Narrator, Ursa (Avatar) Being A Terrible Parent, Ursa is a bad parent, You Have Been Warned, look at all these tags!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-15 18:27:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29812578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBonobo/pseuds/TheBonobo
Summary: Azula Sozin had everything that people could want: intelligence, money and oozing sex-appeal. Currently attending university as a third-year Business Administration student, she had time to have fun and live her life - as expected, thank you. Being the shining heiress, her life had been pre-planned with nothing unaccounted for. Azula just needed to graduate with flying colours and take over the estate with her father’s approval.That was… until an odd little girl knocked on her door and claimed she was her “mommy”.Scratch that - apparently she was her older sister and now has been thrusted the responsibility of taking care of her.
Relationships: Aang & Katara (Avatar), Aang/Azula (Avatar), Aang/Katara (Avatar), Azula & Kiyi & Zuko (Avatar), Azula & Kiyi (Avatar), Azula & Mai (Avatar), Azula & Ozai (Avatar), Azula & Ty Lee (Avatar), Azula & Ursa (Avatar), Azula & Zuko (Avatar), Azula/Ty Lee (Avatar), Katara & Zuko (Avatar), Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Azula becomes Best Older Sister/Mom [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2191503
Comments: 12
Kudos: 33





	Accidental Guardian

**Manhattan, New York City.**

Azula Sozin was particularly adamant about rigid structure. In her eyes, everything had an existential essential purpose - anything less was inadequate.

“ _Almost_ isn’t good enough,” served as her personal dogma.

She liked predictability, it fell in alignment with her values; waking up every morning, she already knew what was ahead of her. New York had a personality that Azula knew to the bone.

People expected the hub to smell like car exhaust and fresh bagels, but in actuality, the scent of burning cigarettes, fresh urine and coffee reigned over the day. It would only transition slowly to the nighttime stench of inarticulate vomit and wasted alcohol.

From the outside, the iconic Statue of Liberty oversaw the bustling city with its void green eyes.

Regardless of perspective, it was noisy in the metropolitan city, with traffic rampant at every inch of the iconic hub. The loud engines and honks of cars could be heard by citizens who resided in the buildings. 

The city was quite cramped; high-rise skyscrapers arranged side by side and buildings were continually being added. There were seas of people moving, with barely any space for anyone to move against the current. Each Starbucks was filled with people in line, demanding to get their early caffeine fix. From the underground, masses of people shoving each other around the subway, hoping to enter the train. Impatience was a common personality trait, along with acts of shouting and pushing. To outsiders, the Big Apple was claustrophobic, chaotic…. But residents were accustomed to it.

Azula had a bitter-sweet relationship with New York City. She loved the vicious hustle culture where only the best could shine, but she despised the filth running amuck on the streets. She admired strolling past the men around Wall Street with their perfectly-pressed suits, coffee in hand, where she could smell the robust scent of java. Yet, she had to control the urge to vomit with the sight of the haggard-looking homeless residing freely in public, their perfume of piss a foul-offence to her nose. 

Azula was not a fan of the inconsistency that the Big Apple offered when it came to quality performance and cleanliness. That is why she considered her home to be a perfect safe haven where she could escape to after a long day. There were no contradictions since she was flawless; therefore, her place lived to that standard.

Located deep inside the city was a peculiarly impersonal residential dwelling. Clean, modern, minimalist lifestyle - there was no imperfection in sight. No pieces of artwork, or even family photographs, hanging around to be seen. There was a lack of a warm presence, devoid of any life signs present in the home. The massive size of the luxurious Manhattan condo severely minimized any specs of dirt lying around. 

Waking up every morning, Azula knew what was ahead of her:

Her nightly fling would leave.

Cook.

Workout in the private gym. 

Shower.

Go to school. 

This was the rigid routine of the resident. Every morning, Azula could be seen in the kitchen. She was proceeding with her regime, adamant about following through. There was time and place for everything, and she was following the laws of the universe—no questions needed to be asked. Doing so has allowed the woman to ritualistically start the day with vigour to conquer it.

It came as a surprise to her when a young man was standing in her lavish living room, with only his boxers.

His name? The girl, clenching her nose bridge with her two fingers, could barely recall his name. Was it... Haru? He was a young, tanned-skin, muscular guy, with soulful green eyes and long light brown hair past his shoulders. He seemed like someone Azula had seen before… someone she should have remembered; however, all she could remember him from was his Tinder profile. 

“Why are you still here?” she asked acerbically. At nine a.m., all her flings would leave. They all had classes to attend, mostly since it was the middle of the school week.

Haru could not believe his eyes. There, in the kitchen, with only an oversized shirt, was Azula Sozin. Her intricate Ancient Chinese Dragon tattoo imprinted from her left shoulder to her forearm, more prominent now; there was not a lot of fabric to cover it. Barely anything on, she was just as mesmerizing as when he laid eyes on her for the first time. It was last semester for a second-year statistics class, but Haru remembered it vividly.

* * *

_Azula walked into class fifteen minutes late. Since it was a big auditorium lecture hall and classes already started, she entered from the back. The course was filled, so all eyes were on her as she strode down the stairs, approaching the front row. Most people would have died from embarrassment at being a focal point in a room crowded with students._

_Not her. With only a simple black sleeve shirt tucked-in her jeans, held by a Hermes belt and black high heels, there was something different about her._

_Azula had sharp, chiselled facial features - especially her striking golden eyes that could cut down anyone with a single stare, and her creamy pale skin only intensifying that focal point. Her silky dark brown hair, held in a half top-knot, flowing gracefully in the air with each step. Her outfit shifting around each movement Azula made, highlighting her voluptuous chest and assets with each move._

_Click. Clack. Click. Clack._

_Azula’s black high heels served as a metronome with each stride, hypnotizing any onlooker’s attention through the rhythm. There was definitely a cold air of aloofness surrounding her presence. Her entire being commanded respect, rarely expelling any unnecessary attention for anyone._

_By some luck, she managed to snag a seat right in front of the teacher._

_Not really._

_When she stopped walking, she stood in front of a girl, the student who previously sat there. Suggestively eyeing at the boy to the student’s right, Azula correctly predicted he was her boyfriend. Flustered, the guy quickly waved his hands at the girl to move. Shocked and angry, the girl obliged but not until staring daggers at Azula._

_Rolling her eyes and smirking, Azula claimed her victory and sat down._

* * *

“I ask again, why are you still here?”Azula demanded with a slightly more dangerous undertone. She did not enjoy the man’s prolonged silence and was irritated at her routine being ruined.

Haru gulped.

“I was hoping we can catch up from last night and possibly be more?”

Azula snorted, causing Haru to frown. She was staring down at him with those familiar intense eyes. Based on Haru’s observation from class, Azula, indeed, was apathetic - unless something demanded her time. She rarely spoke to anyone but strenuously paid attention to the professor. Hanging onto every word, eyes tracking every movement, Azula had acute tunnel vision for the teacher. She was like an exotic black panther, only having eyes for her target.

Haru could feel her unwarranted psychoanalysis coming through. 

“Definitely… never. You were less than satisfactory, not even giving me any indication you actually started.”

Last night, Haru was sporting his typical long hair, held up in a top knot, and was wearing a flannel with dark green pants. Azula automatically attached a label the moment he entered the Smithsonian Museum for their date. That label came with the assumption that Haru was a sensitive guy and of one of the following:

1\. He had the necessary girth and sensuality to please her

2\. It might as well be her thumb, giving no sensation it was even there 

Unfortunately, it was the latter.

“Didn’t you get the hint?” she began. “Your dick is too small. Get out,” she spat out venomously.

* * *

Uneventful.

Azula leaned back in her chair, legs crossed on her desk, uninterested in her surroundings. She was actually early for class… Before that, there were only three other people in the room. Sitting in the final row, square in the middle, Azula could oversee anyone coming through the front door of the spacious lecture hall.

It was the second week of school where it actually mattered. Azula skipped last week for this class because it was syllabus week, and she could not care less. It was only an insignificant elective, and she didn’t want to waste needless effort attendance.

Azula Sozin was a third-year Business Administration student at Columbia University. Being a student at the prestigious Ivy League, it sufficed to say Azula was not a dumbass.

She could not afford to be.

Columbia University was filled with top students. With a less than six percent acceptance rate, millions pushed themselves to hopefully get accepted and attend the school. High school students were expected near-perfect scores, GPA, and stellar grades. Considering there was always a group of students congregating at every school's crevice, the dedication was an understatement. Azula could once remember a group of students in a study picnic. Sitting in the school’s front yard, books in tow, they all looked engrossed in their studies.

Of course, Azula did not fear the competition because she had to live up to her father’s standards.

Azula Sozin was her father’s heir-apparent to his fortune. Ozai was a stern man, liberally speaking, demanding absolutely no imperfections, and quality, consistent work every time. In return, he gave the generous reward of his right hand to Azula. All her expenses were covered for her condo, shopping, and bills. At the moment, Azula was expected to graduate with perfect grades.

That is why it infuriated her when she saw the professor teaching this class. She purposely chose this class because RateMyProf said Professor Zei always taught this class. He was apparently an easy teacher, even giving negligent students easy A’s.

Instead, in his place was a hunched-back, old man with just a green tunic and thick white hair at every location except his crown. King Bumi - was the actual name of this lunatic. He had a crazed look in his big eyes with dark eyebags drooping under them. His snorting and eye twitching at every sentence ending only lowered Azula’s opinion of him.

Azula had been warned by many rumours surrounding him. It was not good news… he was the unreasonable type. The type of teacher to quiz things not taught and nit-pick every detail, docking large marks off each question. King Bumi was far from easy, but Azula had to step up to the challenge.

Her friends, Mai and Ty Lee, were supposed to be in this class with her. Also students at the school, they tried to coordinate studies with each other when they could. They had been long-time friends since she was ten years old, and she would have recognized them the moment they were in class. 

Mai was the designated Albino goth girl in their group. Her existence in any place brought the atmosphere towards a depression. Her uniform consisted of the usual tones of black, with no other accents of colour present. The girl’s long black hair was pinned straight down and framed her face with blunt bangs and twin space-buns. There was not much excitement to her - even when she spoke, Mai was monotone and apathetic.

On the other hand, Ty Lee was the resident crackhead. Unlike Mai, Ty Lee had a dynamic range of inflection whenever she spoke. The girl was more obnoxiously happy than the duo combined. There was no such thing as black in whatever she wore… she considered it “bad juju vibes.” Her spontaneity added to her charm, along with other things. Ty Lee had an unusual everyday hairstyle: a high ponytail, braided to look like a tail, and curtain bangs revealing her youthful face. Her round grey eyes and chubby cheeks were deceitfully paired with an unholy figure. A lot of admirers would agree the girl was a fabled creature from fantasy books. 

Azula agreed - Ty Lee was indeed one of a kind. It was not fathomable to have a cute child’s head, with its own hair leash, attached to such a sinful body and replenishable energy. 

Azula may not voice it, but she did enjoy being around her friends.

* * *

_Every summer, Azula and Mai would partake in Ty Lee’s annual sleepover. It was a beloved tradition they have kept since Azula transferred into their private school a decade ago. As per custom, they would watch a movie by the end of the night, along with popcorn and some odd Ty Lee dish._

_This year was peanut-butter and pickles on crackers. Ty Lee raved about the sourness complementing the sweetness of the spread, but Azula was not a fan of the combination and knew better than to argue. Ty Lee could be really picky, but she was also incredibly kind. That was what drew Azula to her all those years ago (she convinced herself it was really Ty Lee's financial status that made it worthy to initiate a friendship with her). Even if she did not like something, Ty Lee would continue to offer her a slice. Out of courtesy, she had tried the dish but ended up gagging after just one bite. Ty Lee happily ate her dinner of pickles and peanut-butter on crackers. Azula, on the other hand, was disgusted by the concoction. Frankly, this was a flavour profile that was grossly revolting on the human tongue and Azula bluntly told it to Ty Lee._

_“Your loss, Azula,” Ty Lee dismissed it, continuing to ravage over her delectable treasure. Turning her head back to be fixated on the television screen, Ty Lee’s jaw dropped to the ground._

_“Ted Bundy is so hooooooot,” Ty Lee repeated for the unknown time, extenuating the last word with each repetition._

_Mai had suggested that they watch a documentary on Ted Bundy. It was an interesting suggestion and Azula was humoured by the idea of watching such a disturbing documentary._

_“I think society’s beauty is truly shown through the brutality of humanity,” Mai explained while scrolling through Netflix for the film._

_Mai then continued about character study and analysis as a prolific serial killer wanting to ask the question: How was someone who committed gruesome acts still considered popular? Azula did agree with that opinion because she wanted to also know. She also agreed with Ty Lee on Ted Bundy being charming. After all, that was how he managed to successfully seduce his victims. Her friends presented strong points about Ted Bundy that Azula felt mutual towards; however, there were still opinions that she did not share with them._

_“This movie does a terrible job at showcasing Ted Bundy’s graphic murders,” Mai huffed out, clearly disappointed at the film’s portrayal of the famous American Serial Killer._

_While Mai's religious dedication towards gore was her charm, Azula could not help but feel disturbed by Mai’s comment. “It’s not that it’s lacking; it just isn’t very detailed. The camera just shows women getting raped and killed, and not much more.”_

_Unfortunately, Azula had to disagree when there were strong implications of necrophilia occurring with each crossfade between scenes. Although she was also a fan of violence in films, Azula felt uncomfortable at the idea of non-consensual scenes occurring. There was a fine line between graphic and horribly disturbing… and she drew that line with the topic of rape._

_Especially with the repeated scenes of the act in the film._

_Azula had always known about Mai’s adoration towards visceral content, but she was struggling to keep her disgust at Mai’s fascination with this particular topic. Even though she had many years of hiding her emotions, Azula was struggling to keep herself from hurling on the spot. Turning away from Mai’s presence, Azula crinkled her nose and covered her mouth, forcibly preventing the bile, forming in her stomach, from coming out. Azula could overlook many things, but sexual violence was something she had no tolerance for._

_“Guys!” Standing in front of the television, Ty Lee was blocking their view with her arms extended to her sides. Using her arms as a closet rod, her clothes were on hangers and draped down from her arms. “Which outfits do you think Ted Bundy would notice me better with?” Grabbed one outfit from her arms. “This one?” Switched it with another. “Or this one?”_

_“Neither,” was what Azula wanted to say, but she knew it was fruitless trying. Unlike Mai, Ty Lee was fascinated with Ted Bundy for a jarring different reason._

_“Okay,” Ty Lee declared. “Ted Bundy could actually rail me.” It was obvious that Ty Lee had glossed over the part where the Serial Killer would prey on oblivious female victims to partake in his murderous lust. Whenever the Serial Killer was on screen, Ty Lee’s face reddened and a smile would form on her face. She traced air hearts over his head to express her physical infatuation for the murderer._

_“I mean, I get murder is bad and all... but it’s hard to not idolize the guy. He makes it easy to worship him as a “Sex God” when he is so charming and smart.”_

_“Your “Sex God” will be in hell one day where he belongs,” Mai harshly reminded her friend. “Whether or not he is charming and smart, he is still a ruthless killer... a talented one though. Such a shame.”_

_“You guys are actually morons,” The last sentence was directed to the two girls. “I am surrounded by idiots."_

_Despite her friends acting as Ty Lee would put it lovingly, “degenerates,” they served their purposes well. As long as her friends did not drag Azula down with her goals, she did not care what they did. Besides, even though she had no idea how she managed to stay friends with these two girls, she could not imagine them not being an active part of her life. For all their conflicting irritating quirks, Azula appreciated their presence because they added a flair of colours to her life. She looked forward to seeing them every day, but she would not voice it vocally, of course._

* * *

Mai was the first to say she dropped out of the course when she missed the deadline to apply, whereas Ty Lee had to switch out for a mandatory class that she failed last semester. This is the first time she had to stand up for herself without her friends being readily available at her convenience. Not that she couldn’t do it, of course - Azula always had to look out for herself during the most challenging times, and neither of her friends was around.

“Oh joy,” she groaned to herself.

* * *

Inhale. Exhale.

Textbooks to her left.

Stacks of lined paper and Muji pens to her right.

Laptop straight ahead. Adjacent at a 45-degree angle from her black ceramic minimalist vase with a fake bonsai tree inside.

Azula had finished school for the day and gone home. Getting comfortable sitting at her glass dining table, Azula was going to study. Changing from her clothes to her indoor gear, she was about to commence a night of studying. Azula preferred wearing her ritual robes. 

While it was common for people to wear these garbs around their homes, it was unusual to have such robes, made of the finest silk, to be spent casually for homeware. With traces of gold-linings around the edges, the overall red would make most people feel hot just by the colours. Especially with how the robes were held only by a separate maroon-red satchel, hugging the woman’s curves gracefully, tastefully revealing. The slight reveal of her cleavage in sight and half her thighs covered added to the gown’s charm. Simply dressed in her luxurious robes, Azula was the expensively forbidden fruit of any person’s desires.

Along with her clothes, she had her materials ready on the table in their ritualistic positions. Studying was a sacred tradition with clear customs, and it went uninterrupted.

KNOCK. KNOCK.

Who could that be?

At this time, Azula would not have any guests she had invited to her place. With certain exceptions, people needed to give Azula a notice if they were to ever proceed inside. Being the careful person she was, Azula always cleaned up if she ever knew about the possibility of someone visiting her perfect abode.

Looking through the door’s eye-hole, Azula couldn’t find anyone visible through it. Thinking of possible reasons, Azula asked herself: could it be her Amazon package that she ordered a few days ago?

Opening the door, Azula was not greeted with a package on the floor. Instead, a little girl was too short to be seen by the eye-socket.

“Mommy… is that you?”

To anyone who took a good look at Azula, the little girl shared no obvious resemblance to the woman. The tacky label “GAP” screaming across the girl’s pink hoodie and a sewn-on flannel patch covering what Azula concluded was a massive hole. The girl’s choppy brown-coloured shoulder-length hair and brown-coloured eyes were entirely different from her own perfect physical features. She was homeless and confused, for how could they share any similarities?

“Excuse me?” Azula indignantly asked. Admittedly, she was promiscuous, but she always made sure she was careful. For as long as she could remember, she was put on birth control when it became possible. There was no way she could ever give birth to a child she did not know of. 

The girl tilted her head, her twinkling brown eyes filled with concern. “Don’t you recognize me? My name is Kiyi!”

Azula groaned.

She had never heard that name before. Guaranteed, this was their first interaction, but something about her made the woman feel uneasy. This girl was eerily familiar yet was such an anomaly.

Clearly, today had not been going according to plan. Azula did not appreciate the frequent spontaneous occurrences happening, and it pissed her off.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I am officially publishing the prequel to my one-shot "Happy Birthday, Kiyi!". This story covers the events that lead up to the one-shot where Azula learns how to love herself and form unconditional love for her sister, Kiyi. Dysfunctional families make it hard for many people to leave what they have learned in order to grow, and I feel that Azula has never had the chance to truly want more than what Ozai offers. Therefore, I decided to put Azula in a semi-realistic scenario where she goes through her own Redemption Arc in our own world. 
> 
> This still is a work of fiction and I don't own anything except for the message I'm about to illustrate to my readers. Don't like? There's the back-button that you're welcome to use. You have been warned.


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